It’s common to hear people complaining that there aren’t any RPGs that utilize Turn-Based combat anymore. Rather, most have gone the way of Real-Time Combat. And while that’s fine, there’s something special about ATB/Turn-Based – perhaps it’s because that’s how the genre started out and what many people first experienced – it’s always been a selling point of sorts in a game for me. Edge of Eternity brings that and so much more.

Midgar Studio (who you may recognize from this gem) is a tiny studio, but with HUGE ideas and production value. Being a team of four may not sound all that impressive, but believe me – I’ve worked on a team of 30-60 for a year, and the games that resulted were nowhere near as awesome as this.

The game features a world map, though don’t expect something like FF I-IX. That is to say, you’re not wandering around mountains that are the same size as your character – you will be exploring it though, and on a cat mount (NEKAROO!!!) no less. If you imagine hard enough, you can pretend it’s the Cat Bus from My Neighbor Totoro.

The story is one that may sound familiar to you, with invaders, an illness turning people into half-organic, half-mechanical beings, and a fight to save the world. That aside, let’s look at the gameplay some more. Battles have a command list you’d expect from something like Final Fantasy in the past: Attack, Summon, Skill, and Items. You’ll have a team of up to four people, but where things begin to veer off from the normal RPG territory are the environmental dynamics. We’ve all been told to stay on the beaten path, to stay out of the forest, or to only travel during the day time – but rather than different spawns, EoE varies bonuses based on skills, be they profitable to you or your enemy. So if it’s raining, or it’s night time, it will be in your best interest to actually pay attention.

Leveling up works like you’d imagine, though your weapons will also level up utilizing a crystal based system, which adds to attack damage, magic, etc. It allows you to build your weapon the way you want, and with enough leveling, maybe that weapon will evolve into something new… And while that story I mentioned previously may sound typical, you’ll likely experience it in a manner different from your friends. The game is wide open, with multiple paths to take, various endings, and random events happening throughout the game world.

So, how much do they need for this to be successful? Good news, they already reached their goal! Two days was all they needed, but naturally, there are stretch goals. Things such as PS4 and X1 versions, added game functions, and a score by Yasunori Mitsuda (Chrono Trigger, Xenogears, Mario Party, Soul Sacrifice, and many more) are currently listed, and I’d imagine more will come. As with any kickstarter, you’re able to give whatever you want, but the lowest tier for the game is $15 if you hurry – otherwise it’s $20. Add another $10 (respectively for early bird and the regular) for the beta and alpha packages. The higher tiers involve things such as shirts, creating NPCs, monsters, bosses, and quests. Currently the game is coming to PC, Mac, and Linux, but there is almost no way they won’t be making the console stretch goal of 60K. So what are you waiting for? You like RPGs, don’t you? Why aren’t you pledging yet? GO GO GO!

If you’re still reading and are unsure whether this is for you or not, you can download a demo of the game in its current state (read: very early development stages) from the kickstarter page to have your face melted with awesomeness.